Time has no essence when you have someone to share it with
by Barriss-Before-It-Was-Cool
Summary: "Enjolras and Éponine were a very busy couple, but they make it work. They always find time in their busy schedule to spend some time together and talk about things other than work, even if they have to do it in more unusual ways." Just read it to find out what I mean. Enjolras x Éponine modern AU, rated M for a reason.


**Hello everyone, here's a little oneshot I wrote in between tOO chapters. I haven't written a modern AU in a while, and I kinda missed it. **

**The idea for this fic came from my genius friend Lily, who thought it up and immediately turned a light bulb on in my head. **

**Hope you're happy with this, hon.**

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**Time has no essence when you have someone to share it with**

Enjolras and Éponine were a very busy couple.

He, the attorney, with his innumerable cases, his desire to deliver justice for the innocent and the unfortunate who could not afford proper legal aid; she, the social worker, in constant pursuit of social welfare and social change for those afflicted with poverty or social injustices. These were their jobs, and these were their lives.

Even in their off days, they would spend every free second in humanitarian activities, fighting for the rights of all men, for freedom of speech and for a better future. This was their hobby, and this was what they loved.

They had been married for over two years now, and while life had changed only for the better, their hectic schedules rarely permitted them to enjoy each other's company for too long at a time. When they were together, such as at meals, or late at night when they would arrive home after yet another busy day of making the world a better place, the two would either talk about their eventful days or be too exhausted to barely mutter a lazy 'good night'.

Such was their married life. And while most couples would long ago have capitulated to the distance and lack of emotional contact, Enjolras and Éponine made it work. They always made it work. Such was their relationship.

They always managed to find a window in their calendar to take care of familial business, chat or gossip about their dear but not quite sane friends, plan the future, and most importantly, relieve each other of that pent-up stress that became unbearable every now and then – sex basically. And if taking care of all of these implied doing them at the same time, then goddamn it that's what they'd do.

Like they were doing right now, for example.

"Did you find the time to call the decorator and tell him we've decided to renovate the kitchen?" Éponine breathed against Enjolras' jawline while her hands were already nimbly making work of his shirt buttons. It was a task she had done so many times she did not even need to look, and it was a good thing since that way she could better concentrate on covering his neck and collarbone with soft, feathery kisses. She fucking loved his neck and collarbone.

"Called him yesterday," Enjolras hummed and tilted his head back to allow her better access to his Adam's apple. "Said we should decide on a color scheme by next week – please don't give me a hickey," he groaned as his wife puckered her lips against a certain spot on his neck and sucked lightly, until he felt that familiar aching sensation that made him sure he would have to wear a scarf tomorrow.

"Too late," Éponine snickered and admired her handiwork. His shirt had since fallen to the floor in a heap and her hands were already running up and down his broad, lean chest. "Do you want any specific colors?" she asked and lifted her arms up to make removing her top easier for him.

"Red," he replied, throwing her shirt away and turning her around to unfasten her bra. Oh, she was wearing the dark teal lingerie today. Awesome!

Her bra fell to the floor and she sighed in relief the moment her breasts were released from their silk prison. "Enjolras we can't paint the entire house red, we already did the bathroom and hallway in crimson, we need a bit of diversity," she moaned and arched her back when Enjolras cupped her breasts in his palms from behind.

"How about red AND black?" he leaned down to whisper and bite the soft flesh of her earlobe. His hands gently massaged her mounds, squeezing, reshaping them in his palms and capturing her hard peaks between his fingers.

"How about light blue and white?" she moaned. God that was the spot… Her nipples were her erogenous zone numero uno, and the second he even brushed his fingertips over them was enough to cause a whirlpool in her panties.

"With red accents on the furniture?" Enjolras grinned and then laughed at the whimper that escaped her lips when he rolled her rosy tips between his fingers.

"Oh, fuck, FINE!" So she lost another battle. What could she do? The moment he started pinching and rubbing her nipples, she was mush in his hands.

Not for long though.

Swiftly, Éponine spun herself around and crashed her lips against his. He had barely opened his mouth to allow her tongue entrance and his trousers were already on the floor in a heap around his ankles. "I talked to Musichetta the other day," she broke their kiss to inform him as her hand found his erection and began stroking it through the smooth fabric of his boxer briefs. Ah, red again, how exceptionally predictable.

"And what did she say?" he groaned. His hands were already clinging to her waist, squeezing her hard to keep himself in check while his wife fondled his cock.

She rubbed him up and down, her fingers stopping to scrape against his testicles whenever they'd be close enough to that area. "Well, Joly is being his prissy little self as usual," Éponine mumbled between the kisses she placed on his pectorals, "guess they won't be serving any shellfish at the wedding in the end."

"Oh fuck!" Enjolras growled and in one quick motion, literally swept Éponine off her feet and carried her to the bed, where he unceremoniously threw her down on the mattress. "You know I've never really been into seafood," he panted and threw himself on top of her, capturing her lips in a savage kiss.

Their tongues swept and swirled inside each other's mouths, and Enjolras wasted no time in removing her skirt and panties at once, leaving her fully naked underneath him.

"I know," she gasped as her husband began his descent down her body. _Finally_. "Which is why I didn't really comment on it."

"They'll come to an agreement soon enough," he muttered just before claiming her left nipple with his lips. He licked and suckled on the taut tip, his arms holding Éponine steady as her body began twitching with every nibble he took oh her most sensitive area. "Speaking of weddings," Enjolras added, removing his mouth from her breast to give her a bit of a breather, "what are we gonna do about Prouvaire and Azelma?"

"There's nothing to do," she gasped, trying to stabilize her breathing after almost losing it when his tongue began lapping at her breasts, "they love each other, they're old enough and if they want to get married, then all we can do is be supportive of their decision."

"I just think she should finish college first," he sighed and once again turned his attention to her mounds. He grasped them with his hands, and gently began kneading them, all the while rubbing her tender peaks with his thumbs and kissing her in the leftover space between them.

"Shit… fuck… I… I think only good can come of it," she hissed and her hands clenched around the pale blue sheets of their bed, squeezing until her knuckles turned white. "Jehan is good to Zelma. He'll make her happy."

"I guess," he mumbled against her skin. Having had enough of her breasts – for the moment – and wanting something a bit more substantial, he descended lower, much lower, until his head was adequately placed just above the damp flesh between her thighs. And holy shit she smelled so good. Enjolras couldn't even find it in himself to tease his other half for a bit, he wanted to taste her so badly. So without further ado, he slammed his mouth on her sex and let his tongue do its thing.

Éponine moaned and groaned as his mouth ravished her. He sucked her folds one at a time, he even nibbled on them a few times with his teeth, gently of course – or else he would be fed with a good ol' knee in the chin – and his tongue lapped circles around her swollen clit, circling it until her whole body began going numb. "I got another call from Gavroche's principal today," she suddenly remembered another important topic she needed to discuss with him, and fought hard to keep her mind clear enough to be able to actually use words.

"Uh-huh," was his muffled response, his mouth still busy with eating at her vagina.

"The little monster got into trouble," she hissed and arched her back when he puckered his lips to suck on her clit, "again! And sweetie, are you going to fuck me today or should I wait until next week?"

Enjolras snorted and removed his lips from her core. "Sorry, guess I lost track of time down here," he laughed and after removing his boxers at warp speed, he slithered back up so that he was now directly on top of her. He kissed his spouse firmly on the lips, letting her taste the saltiness of her arousal that covered his whole mouth, and with his knees, he spread her legs open to allow himself access to her center. "So what did Gavroche do this time?" he asked as his tip finally breached her opening and slid inside her, slowly, so that she had the chance to become accustomed to his girth.

She drew in a sharp breath the moment his cock entered her. It had been a while and she had almost forgotten how fucking incredible he felt. "You know what he did?" Éponine panted as he began moving inside of her, delving deeper inside with each incredible thrust. "That little brother of mine – bought a pack of condoms – fuck – filled them with water – oh God – and began throwing them at people – harder!" she moaned in time with her husband's rhythm, feeling herself slowly wither away as his length finally filled her to the hilt.

He stopped to stare at her. "You're shitting me."

"I shit you not and don't you dare stop!" she snapped and bucked underneath him to create more friction between them.

"Sorry," he sputtered, clenching his jaw and once again resuming plunging himself into Éponine's slit. She was so tight around him; how he managed to last more than a day without having her like this was a mystery he would probably never solve. Maybe his balls were made of steel. "What the hell are we going to do about him?" he shook his head and increased his tempo, gyrating his hips a bit in order to hit that exact spot he knew made Éponine go crazy.

"Ground him for a month – Oh! – No more late night video games with Courfeyrac – Harder! – Double his chore amount – Oh my GOD!" she cried out as Enjolras slammed into her with such force he pushed her whole body forward a few inches. Éponine loved it when he got rough.

She grinded her hips against his, hard, fast and wild; they rocked together with such intensity the bed started creaking beneath them. Holy fuck she was gonna die. "I'm cumming!" she shrieked and wrapped her arms around his shoulder, holding on for dear life as rapture steadily began claiming her body.

"Me too – also agreed on the Gavroche thing," he growled and pounded into her as fast as his body allowed it.

Éponine screamed and her body stiffened when that final thrust finally brought her over the edge. Her vision blurred for a moment and she thought she saw God. Wonder if He was laughing at her O-face right now.

"FUCK!" Enjolras' pained growl came moments later. His hips bucked within her when his own orgasm ran through his body, spilling himself inside and filling her with his sticky load.

They took deep, desperate breaths, holding each other tightly as they waited for the convulsions to die down and the world to come into focus again.

"I love you," Éponine whispered against Enjolras' neck and she squeezed him tightly. She wanted to feel his skin press against hers, remind herself what a wonderful husband she had and just how much she adored him.

"I love you too," he replied with a warm smile, "more than anything." And it was true. To him, there was nothing more precious and sacred in his life than Éponine. She was so important to him; this strong, intelligent young woman, who could do no wrong in his eyes, had conquered his heart so easily and so completely, he wondered if it could handle feeling any more love than he already felt. Actually, it probably could.

He lifted himself, slowly easing his spent sex from out her center, and with a tired groan, he fell on the bed beside her, wishing for nothing more than to spend the rest of the day like this, sprawled naked on his bed and holding his wonderful wife in his arms.

"I should get dressed, I need to get to the office soon," Éponine grumbled and wiped at her exhausted face.

Or not, Enjolras sighed.

They always had to go back to work. It wasn't an option, but neither of them could, or would choose to not do their duties and respect their moral obligations to the people they served. Such was their life.

"'Ponine…" he suddenly said when she was getting ready to sit up, and with a soft hand on her shoulder, he gently pushed her back down on the bed, "there's one more thing I'd like to talk about."

"Okay," she replied, looking at him with a slight frown.

After taking a deep breath, and trying to channel his inner courage, Enjolras cupped Éponine's chin and stared into her beautiful brown eyes. "'Ponine," he said slowly, afraid of her reaction, afraid of what her answer might be, but fully intent on speaking his mind and letting her know what was in his heart, "'Ponine, I think I want us to stop using contraception." There, he said it.

She stared at him in shock. Her eyes were wide and her eyebrows shot all the way up into her forehead, in the manner they always did whenever she was really surprised about something. "What are you talking about?" she asked, and her voice was small and anxious.

Enjolras sat up and stared down at his wife with the same kind of intensity he had in his eyes whenever he was fighting for something he believed in. "Éponine, I love you," he answered and she noticed how his left foot was twitching; it did that when he was nervous. "You know how much I adore you, and how happy you've made me in the past 2 years since we've been married. Life has been great with you. It's been wonderful! But, with our jobs, and the work with Les Amis, I feel like things have been at a bit of a standstill recently. And I'm not complaining," he quickly interjected when he noticed the worried look on her face, "I love our relationship, I love that we both fight for the people and for the country, but…" and here he faltered, not quite sure how to phrase the next part.

"But?" she repeated his words and sat up to be at the same level as her husband. He looked so afraid and so insecure, her heart clenched in her chest when she looked at him. This must really be important to him.

"But I want more!" he finally blurted after gathering up his nerve. "I want to feel even closer to you. I want to share something with you that's above all possessions and material things; something that's more important than even you or me." He clasped her hands in his and squeezed them tightly. "'Ponine, I love you, and I want to have a child with you."

It felt like time had stopped in that moment and all Éponine could hear or feel was her heart beating wildly inside her chest. She was overwhelmed with emotion, her words were caught in her throat and there was a sting in her eyes that she didn't know how to get rid of. She hadn't felt like this since Enjolras had gotten on bended knee and presented her with a diamond studded engagement ring, only this time, instead of pure bliss, she felt panic and a crippling fear that threatened to tear her whole soul apart.

A baby? Her? Éponine Thénardier, former street rat, good for nothing, scum of the earth, Éponine Thénardier? She who had been unable to feel nothing but hate towards existence before meeting the love of her life and future husband? How could she? How could she possibly carry a child and have it turn up alright? What if… oh God, what if she was like her mother?

"Éponine?" she heard Enjolras call out to her, but she couldn't look at him. She was afraid that if she did, she would succumb to that look he had in his eyes and consent to what would be a horrible mistake.

His fingers touched her cheek and it was then that she realized she was crying. "Éponine, please, look at me," he pleaded and the tone in his voice broke her heart.

"I can't." It was all she managed to say before her silent tears turned into sobs. "I can't! I can't do this! I couldn't do that to your child!" Her mouth was running off without her, and she was too broken to catch up to it. "How can I give birth to a kid? How can I raise one? I don't know how to be a mother! The only one I ever knew threw me to the dogs the moment I was old enough to stand on own two feet. How can I properly educate a kid when _that's_ my idea of motherhood? And look at me, I'm all kinds of fucked up! I'll never be okay. I'll never get away from the person I used to be. How can I possibly bring another me into this world? How?!" She was wailing now and she buried her face in her palms, feeling ashamed that she was showing Enjolras this disgusting part of her.

Suddenly, strong arms embraced her and she was enveloped by a warmth that immediately soothed the pain she was feeling. It was like the strongest medicine, that not only healed her body, but her heart and mind as well.

"Éponine, stop it!" Enjolras said through gritted teeth, and she noticed with dread that he was crying too. "Why do you keep doing this to yourself?" he asked and there was a pained frustration in his voice that mixed with his sniffles and soft sobs. It fucking tore her apart.

"'Ponine you are NOTHING like your mother. Just look at everything you've done, everything you've accomplished, and you'll know you're so much better. You put yourself through school, you worked three jobs in order to pay your tuition, you made friends with a group of revolutionary schoolboys and taught them a thing or two about real life. You raised your kid sister and brother all on your own, even though you were still barely a kid yourself, 'Ponine if that's not motherhood then I don't know what is."

He cupped her chin and forced her to look at him. "And most impressively, you made this jackass in front of you, who only knew how to talk shit about the government and rant about how much he hated emotional attachment, fall so hopelessly, passionately and irrevocably in love that he would rather kill himself than spend his life without you in it."

He placed his hands on her cheeks and brought their faces closer together until Éponine could clearly see her reflection in his crystal blue eyes. Wow, she looked like shit.

"'Ponine you're the most amazing, inspiring woman I have ever met. You're a far greater person than I, and the only thing more wonderful than the thought of there being another you in this world is the thought that I could be a part of it too. Éponine, I would be honored if you would bear my child, and it would make me the happiest man on earth – no, scratch that, I already am the happiest man on earth – in the universe if I could call your child my own."

Fuck.

Fuck, he was amazing.

How the hell did she ever land a man as perfect as this? It was a paradox. Or maybe she really was all that after all. Either way, she was lucky, so lucky to have him in her life.

At last she felt like she could breathe again. It was like a massive burden she never knew she was carrying was lifted off her shoulders, and now she felt as light as a feather. How did he do it? How did he manage to destroy all of her fears and insecurities with just a few simple words?

Oh yeah… Love.

Leaning forward, she placed a flutter of a kiss on his lips and threw his arms around him in a warm embrace.

They hugged each other for several minutes, until they had both calmed down, and after giving him one last squeeze, she pulled back and looked her husband straight in the eyes.

"Okay."

Enjolras' eyes lit up and he stared at Éponine like she had just sprouted wings – which was very similar to what she was feeling right now, but that wasn't important. "Okay?" he asked hesitantly, trying to make sure that what she meant by 'okay' was the same as what he thought her 'okay' meant.

"Let's do it," she nodded and a wide smile spread on her lips as she confirmed his question. "Let's have a baby."

The look on Enjolras' face as she spoke those words was the most beautiful thing she had ever seen. His smile was so brilliant and his eyes were so alight she thought she would go blind if she stared at him too long.

He was happy.

And she was happy.

Even if she wasn't 100% confident that things would turn out well, the fact that she had her husband to hold her hand throughout the journey made her 1000% more optimistic.

After sharing a long, loving kiss, Éponine finally rose to her feet and began getting ready for another long day at the office. But before she was done, a thought hit her. She found her handbag and fished for her cellphone in the mess of papers, make-up and other shit she probably didn't even need. After she finally located it, she quickly hit speed-dial and brought it to her ear.

Meanwhile, Enjolras was staring at his wife from the bed, grateful that he wouldn't have to go back to work for at least another hour. He doubted he would be able to get any decent work done today anyway, not while he was busy strolling through cloud nine. He honestly felt incredible. He was happy, he was excited and he had never been as anxious for the future as he was right now.

He gazed at Éponine as she waited for whomever she was calling to answer and couldn't help but think just how lucky he was to be with someone as amazing as her.

"Hello? Cosette? Hey babe, what's up?" she spoke into her phone and you could barely notice she had been crying only minutes ago. Why was she calling Cosette, though?

"Uh-huh, that's great. Listen, can you email me the number to your gynecologist? Yeah, the one you went to when you were pregnant with Hugo. What? No. No, actually, Enjolras and I decide we'd like to try for a baby." She glanced his way and smiled happily. "Yeah, and I thought it'd be good to get a checkup before we started – don't squeal Cosette. Yes, I'm excited too."

She rolled her eyes and shook her head in Enjolras' direction, who was looking back at her, grinning from ear to ear.

"Yeah, so can you just email me her number? Awesome! Thanks a bunch. Oh, and Cosette? Don't go babbling to the others about this, we'd like to tell them ourselves. Thanks. Yeah, yeah, I love you too. Bye."

With that, she hung up, threw her phone back in her handbag and walked back to the bed to take a seat next to her spouse. "Well, Cosette is excited," she informed him and bent down to place a quick peck on his forehead.

"So I gathered," he chuckled and shifted his head to capture her mouth one more time before she headed off to work.

"We're gonna have a baby," Eponine whispered against his lips, and somehow, the power of these words was so great it nearly took their breaths away.

The two of them would, God willing, soon become three, and it was scary, yet exciting all at once.

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**Thanks for reading, and remember, reviews are very much appreciated.**


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